We’re sick of excuses, Thames Water, say river campaigners

CAMPAIGNERS staged a protest in Henley to highlight the pollution of the River Thames.

The event at the Friday Street slipway was organised by the Henley Mermaids open water swimming group and the Henley and Marlow River Action Group.

People from groups including Ocean Rebellion, River Action UK, Project Planet Earth and Thames21 also came for a swim, performance, music and speeches.

About 30 supporters joined them, including town councillor Sara Kandiah, who carried a placard which read: “Restore nature now.”

Ocean Rebellion put on a performance called “The bathing beauties”, which symbolised the sickness of the river.

Four actors dressed as Victorian swimmers and wore make-up to make them look unwell.

They sat in deckchairs, coughing and groaning with pain while surrounded by rubbish typically found in water, including bottles, dog poo bags, tampons, crisp packets and netting.

Around them were placards reading: “Thames Water’s s***” and “Sick to death of Thames Water”.

The actors took turns to “throw up” on the floor, to exclamations and gasps from the spectators, before getting in the water in gas masks for a paddle while one laid down, “dying”.

Gary Hamilton played various tunes on the French horn, including the death march from Star Wars and the Drunken Sailor sea shanty.

Mermaids Laura Reineke, Joan Fennelly and Susan Barry and Dave Wallace, of the Henley and Marlow River Action Group, went for a quick dip.

Soraya Wooller and Sam Hayes, of Earthwatch Europe, an environmental charity, tested the river for nutrients and provided test kits for campaigners to use later.

They explained their equipment and said their results had shown that the water contains unhealthy levels of nitrates and phosphates.

Ms Wooller said: “[This] is something that needs further investigation to understand what the potential sources of pollution are. We’re in an urban site here and standing right above a combined sewer overflow which is owned by Thames Water.

“Currently that pipe is trickling. We don’t know specifically what’s coming out but downstream we are seeing high levels of nutrients.

“Nitrates and phosphates are a proxy to tell us there is potentially sewage pollution here.

“We may also have road run-off, so there is a host of different chemicals, bacteria and toxins — all the chemical cocktail of 21st century living is pouring into this river.”

She said it wasn’t just humans who faced health risks by using the river but also the creatures in it and insects that relied on it. Ms Wooller added: “There is very little plant life in this patch of river. We can see a lot of algae as a result of nutrient pollution.

“You tend to see the death of plant life, accumulation of sediment and the overgrowth of algae, which has a direct impact on the ecology of the river.

“You’re destroying the habitat by having this build-up of sediment and algae.

“It has an impact on river invertebrates, the very base of the river’s food chain. The ecosystem is impacted and it has a knock-on effect up the food chain — fish and the other wildlife that inhabits the river.

“We have a choice as to whether we want to get in or not but the creatures that live here don’t have a choice and we’re impacting their habitat hugely.”

Ms Reineke said: “We are here giving our voice to the river against the sewage pollution that Thames Water continues to dump into our beautiful Thames.

“It’s killing our wildlife, it’s affecting the inhabitants and us humans that use it.

“We are trying to gain support and educate people as to why Thames Water is doing this, what exactly it’s doing, telling the truth and giving people the power to use their voice.Protecting these habitats is not just an environmental duty, it’s a moral obligation.”

Sue Walker, of Ocean Rebellion, said: “Thames Water has failed to deliver 105 schemes in the last five years, was in breach of its commitment to Ofwat, was prosecuted more than 180 times and fined more than £100 million.

“But a 35 per cent increase in charges to households to pay for their fines. Water is a human right and should not be privatised for profit. We are in a worldwide natural crisis caused by humans and Thames Water is just adding to it.

“I emptied my kettle the other day and was absolutely horrified at what came out of it: it was disgusting, filthy, and that was tap water that I pay quite a lot for.

“You’re paying, too, for water that is not being cleaned, for water that is going into our rivers and the sea.

“We have no idea what the long-term effect will be but it’s serious and it needs to be sorted now. Water is a right, it is not a profit-making business, Thames Water.”

Ms Reineke said: “Rivers are lifelines for nature, sanctuaries for our spirit and economic engines for our community.

“They create ecosystems and support a staggering variety of wildlife. Our waterways foster recreation, relaxation and adventure, making our lives richer in the process.

“Moreover, they contribute to our local economies: think of the towns and villages nestled among these waterways, the businesses they support, the tourism they attract and the jobs they create which are integral to many communities and particularly our own.

“Our waterways are facing threats, pollution, habitat degradation and overuse, putting them at risk.

“Let us all be guardians of these precious lifelines, cherishing their beauty and biodiversity and preserving them for all to enjoy.

“We have had many meetings with Thames Water and they have fobbed us off time after time.

“We need to educate everybody in our communities along the river as to exactly what is happening so that every single person who looks at the river, uses the river, can have a voice and call out water companies. Water companies are failing, our government is failing and the regulators are failing.”

Mr Wallace said: “Thames Water, why do you hate Henley so much? Our children have been getting sick. We test the water and find harmful bacteria and a high level of pollutants.

“This testing tells us the river is in dire ecological health. Why? Dark satanic mills that line our rivers… sewage treatment works. They spew treated and untreated effluent into the river every day.

“This is 2023, not Victorian Britain. Our demands are simple: Thames Water, clean up your act, stop poisoning our river, treat it with respect and invest in infrastructure to ensure that wastewater is stripped of everything harmful to humans and nature.

“We must restore nature now. The Thames is Henley. Without it, we are nothing.”